As the conversation heats up in the comments section of my review of the film, posted earlier this morning (HERE), I thought I'd maybe lighten things up a bit with a contest!

It's obvious that this is a film many of us have been looking forward to seeing, since it was first announced; we've certainly been pushing it quite a bit on S&A, posting almost every single piece of related media. I'd say that there's quite a bit of interest in how Colombiana performs at the box office on its opening weekend - this weekend! I'm certainly curious. I don't think it's as obvious a guess as some might think.

Is it strictly a fanboy affair, drawn to the idea of the film's star, in action, in her skivvies; or, as some have suggested, might women also see this as an opportunity to demonstrate to studios heads and financiers that there is an audience for films of this caliber with tough female lead characters? And will those women bring their boyfriends and/or husbands along?

Plus it's rated PG-13, so while it's not what I'd call a family movie, teen boys and girls may also be attracted to it.

I should also mention the fact that its star is a black Latino woman, who also has a Caucasian fan base (or at least an awareness), given some of the high-profile work she's done in the recent past. So, might her appeal stretch across race and ethnic boundaries, which further helps box office?

Things that may you go hmmm... How will the film perform this opening weekend?

It's only real competition this weekend (other than films already in theaters, like The Help and Planet Of The Apes, which were #1 and #2 last weekend) is Don't Be Afraid of the Dark, the Guillermo del Toro-produced horror movie, which stars Katie Holmes.

So, we've got 2 films opening wide this weekend that feature women in lead roles; how might this affect audience decisions in general? Or might the family comedy Our Idiot Brother play spoiler and leap to the top spot?

Box Office Mojo says that Colombiana will open on 2,614 screens, while Don't Be Afraid of the Dark will open on 2,760 screens, and Our Idiot Brother on 2,555 screens. Not a significant difference between the three, so it's anyone's race to win right?

But I'd say one of these 3 films should open at #1; at least you'd think so. Unless The Help or Planet Of The Apes somehow manages to remain strong at the top.

Of the 3 new films, Our Idiot Brother is leading in the critical reception category, with a 69% Fresh rating thus far according to Rotten Tomatoes. Colombiana is at 57% Rotten, and Don't Be Afraid of the Dark is at 55% Rotten. But there are still a lot more reviews to come, so these numbers could swing very quickly in any direction. I'm just telling you what they say as of the time of this post.

So, we're less than 24 hours away from opening day for Colombiana, and I thought we'd have a little contest fun we've played before (although it's been awhile) called Guess The Box Office. In short, you take a stab at what you think the opening box office total will be for a film - in this case Colombiana - and, on Monday, when the final adjusted tally is published, whomever guessed the number closest to the actual take, WITHOUT GOING OVER, wins the prize!

The prize is a $50 gift certificate to Amazon.com.

So, in the comment section, enter your guesses on how much you think Colombiana will make during its opening weekend, and whomever comes closest to the actual number, without going over, wins the gift cert.

You have until TOMORROW, FRIDAY, August 26th, AT NOON EST to submit your guesses! If more than one person guesses the exact same figure, and that figure wins the contest, a supplementary drawing will happen, in which one winner will be chosen at random from the all the winning entries.

Again, tomorrow, Friday, August 26th, at noon, I will close the comments section on this post! So, get your guesses in while you can... starting..................................... Now! :)